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At our house, we have several bags of bags. We have a bag of reusable shopping bags. The kids have a bag of cheap bags from Subway kids meals and promotional sling bags. We have several bags of gift bags. One contains kids’ birthday bags. Another has Christmas gift bags. The piece de resistance is our bag of baby shower gift bags. You know that one has some years on it seeing as our last baby gift was given to us over eight years ago!
Collection of Bags
The point is, we don’t buy gift bags if we have a suitable one in our collection of bags. Whatever the gifting occasion, we are sure to have a bag for it.
Building Reuse into Your Gifting Routine
So this holiday, as you are gifting and receiving gifts, think about how you can reuse or encourage reuse of the gift bags. My parents buy those 99¢ reusable shopping bags for gifts to encourage reuse. Those bags are great for not only grocery shopping, but also for returns, road trips, and storage.
Tips for Reusing Bags
When you give a gift in a bag, take care not to write directly on the bag or affix a sticker where it can’t be removed. Instead, wrap the sticker around the handle or tape a “To, From” card to the top of the bag where it can be easily removed without damaging the bag. If you have a gifted bag with a sticker or writing, see if you can remove it using the heat from a hair dryer to loosen the glue and rubbing alcohol to remove any remaining residue. Alcohol may also help take off ink, or try rubbing dry erase marker over it.
Your Very Own Bag of Bags
While your family is opening gifts this holiday season, consider starting or building up your own bag of bags. Next year you’ll have a nice collection to choose from when it’s time to start the holiday madness all over again!
